With prom March 1-2, there is
no time to waste for junior girls to find a special dress or dresses for prom.
With high expectations, a junior girl often purchases her prom dress underneath
layers of fabric and stress. With dress designs in mind, she goes shopping
hoping to find the dress of her dreams.

She tries on a variety of
dresses, one too big, the next the wrong style. Finally, she pulls a dress off
the rack that fits all of her requirements. She tries it on and it fits
perfectly. In anticipation, she turns the price tag over and with that, her
dreams for this dress are shattered. Back to the racks, she goes.

Prom dresses may include
layers of tulle or satin, but unseen layers include financial struggles, peer
pressure, modesty concerns and finding time to go shopping.

“I am willing to go to all
lengths to find a prom dress that is perfect. This is a once in a lifetime
opportunity and I’m going to find a good dress that I am just in love with,”
said junior Mahayala Anderson. “Ever since I was a kid, I’ve got to go see the
girls dressed as a princess at prom. Prom is pretty important to me, and I
definitely want to stand out in my dress.”

Because of financial issues,
many students begin their dress hunt early in the season. Junior Isa Wright
purchased her prom dress before school began.

“We got my prom dress when we
went school shopping for a great price,” Wright said. “People really
underestimate the power of ‘Ross.’”

Others that struggle
financially create a budget to stick to. Junior Alecia Terry knows that it is
important to stick to a budget so she doesn’t place a burden on her family.

“It’s
just really stressful to find a dress, considering my family doesn’t have a lot
of money, so it can be really stressful for my parents even just to find suits
for my brothers,” Terry said. “It can be a lot more stressful for my parents to
pay for my dress, because we don’t have a lot of money to spend. I’m hoping we
can find one in our range of money. I’m going to try not to take out a loan,
cause if I go into debt, I’d basically be starting out bad as an adult.”

Many students also feel the
need to buy two dresses, one for each night of prom. This stress adds to many
of the families’ financial burdens.

“I feel pressured to buy a
dress for both nights,” Terry said. “My brothers’ girlfriends tend to buy two
dresses. And I think, ‘Oh man if I don’t live up to that expectation I’m pretty
sure my parents, or siblings are going to judge me.’”

NS students are often
involved in time-consuming activities such as Makayla Robinson who participated
in the school musical “Newsies.” Robinson struggled to schedule a time to shop
for a prom dress in a store.

As an alternative, Robinson
purchased her prom dress online, which is becoming a more popular option.

“I am a bigger girl, so the
biggest stress was finding a prom dress that would fit,” Robinson said. “Being
in the musical is stressful, but as an ensemble member, I can do a lot of
online shopping. When I saw the picture of my dress, it was the feeling you get
when you put on your wedding dress for the first time and it was like, ‘This is
the dress.’”

Because of the culture at NS,
students are often concerned about modesty. The more fabric on a dress, the
more expensive the dress can become. This creates difficulty in finding a
modest dress.

“I am Mormon and I have high
standards for my body, so I want to be modest,” junior Anaka Black said.

While some students are
worried about modesty, parents are often more concerned than the students.

“Modesty is a big deal for my
family,” Terry said. “My parents are super concerned. My dad actually suggested
that I wear sleeves that go all the way to my wrists and all the way up to my
neck. I want to find a dress that’s modest, but I don’t want to die in the
heat.”

Finding the perfect dress
isn’t always the last step, it is common for girls to need to alter their
dresses.